Operating stability of a self-breakdown spark-gap frequency switch rated at a voltage of 300 kV and a switched power of up to 450 J

A test bench for studying two-electrode spark gaps rated at a voltage of 300 kV and a pulse repetition rate of up to 10 Hz and operating in air at elevated pressure. The typical time of pulse charging of a capacitive storage in the bench equals about 100 μs. The object of investigation is a spark gap the operating stability of which at a level of 10% of the rate voltage is achieved by initiating a corona discharge at the prebreakdown stage. It is shown that unstable operation is due to the accumulation of nitrogen oxides in the gap. To maintain the oxide content at an acceptable level, continuous gas purging is applied and necessary gas flow rates are estimated.